Massive fire engulfs Feodosiya oil terminal following Ukrainian strike on Crimea
A massive fire erupted following a drone strike allegedly by Ukrainian forces, targeting an oil depot in Feodosia within annexed Crimea. The blaze, ongoing for over a day, necessitated the evacuation of 1,047 residents, as confirmed on Tuesday, October 8, by Igor Tkachenko, the Moscow-appointed head of the city's administration. According to Tkachenko, residents of Chernomorskaya promenade and the Blizhnie Kamyshi area were forced to leave. Firefighters continue to battle the flames, he added.
Meanwhile, the region's so-called "head," Sergei Aksyonov, noted the involvement of specialized agencies in managing the emergency. Aksyonov urged residents to stay calm, assuring that compensation for property loss will be provided in full.
Analysis of satellite images by "Radio Liberty" suggests that the Feodosia oil depot, struck on the night of October 7, has housed a Russian "Pantsir-S1" air defense system since the fall of 2022. "Images reveal the 'Pantsir' mounted on a platform," said the report. Similar installations are spotted at other critical Russian infrastructure sites, including one near President Vladimir Putin's residence outside Moscow. However, "Radio Liberty" questions the efficacy of the system during the latest attack and whether the system itself was destroyed remains unconfirmed.
The flames in Feodosia ignited in the early hours of October 7, as shared by Igor Tkachenko in prior reports. "There are no casualties. Emergency services are on the scene," he stated, according to the peninsula's "operational headquarters." Explosions rocked the city around 4:25 a.m., followed by massive fires, reported local residents to the Telegram channel Shot. Another channel, "Crimean Wind," cited attacks on military airfields in Saky and Belbek that same night.
The Feodosia oil depot, identified as JSC "Marine Oil Terminal," stands as the largest in Crimea, boasting a storage capacity of 250,000 cubic meters. It is one of two such terminals on the Russian-annexed peninsula, the second of which is located in Sevastopol.
The attacked terminal is situated on Feodosia's eastern outskirts, near the village of Beregovoye. The facility faced similar drone strikes in March, causing damage to a major fuel pipeline, as well as previous assaults in December and November 2023.
Ukraine's General Staff confirmed the strike on the maritime oil terminal in Feodosia. The agency noted that this depot plays a critical role in supplying the Russian occupying army. "The mission was completed by Ukrainian missile forces in coordination with other defense units. Efforts to undermine Russia's military-economic capacity continue," the Ukrainian Command stated.